Alterpodes. Communication biases in plausible reasoning about geographic perception of space and place

This study builds on existing work on cartographic thinking in everyday life to better understand how our communication with others and use of media influences our perceptions of continental scale geography. Using a mixed, US-Italian sample of college students living in cities on similar latitudes (40N), we found that there is a bias in placing U.S. cities further north and European cities further south than where they should be. Such biases reflect a process of “plausible reasoning,” which assumes that spaces that are perceived as being culturally similar are also perceived to be at the same latitudes. Factors that both increase and reduce bias are discussed, in particular movies, online maps, and online communication